Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Maryland

Coffee shops and cafes in Harford County, MD

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for coffee shops and cafes in Harford County, MD, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 79 out of 100: High

Ranked #113 of 2,063 scored counties
#6 of 24 scored counties in Maryland

Listings
47
26 chain locations (55%)
Official establishments
48
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · 0.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$480.4M
On food away from home · $4,719 a household
Spending per listing
$10.2M
2.8 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.6
58% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
266,446
+2.0% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in Harford County

The site report maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Harford County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Harford County scores 79 (high) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #113 of 2,063 scored counties and #6 of 24 scored counties in Maryland. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for coffee shops and cafes.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 47 coffee shops and cafes in Harford County. Chain locations make up 55% of them, against 39% across the U.S. That comes to 4.6 for every 10,000 households, 58% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

At $4,719 per household (16% above the U.S. average), households in Harford County spend about $480.4M a year on food away from home. That is about $10.2M of household spending for each cafe on map listings, 2.8 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Harford County was 48 in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 2,121 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $1.1M have gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Harford County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Harford County grew 2.0%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Harford County compares

The same measures for Maryland and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the coffee shops and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Coffee shops and cafes in Harford County, MD compared with Maryland and the U.S.
MeasureHarford CountyMarylandU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.67.611.0
Spending per listing$10.2M$6.1M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)2,1212,1921,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–20230.0%+5.7%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.0%+1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,719$4,604$4,070
Median household income$112,265$103,678$80,734
Groundwork market score7982

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
48 → 48All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars · 0.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
727
Annual payroll, 2023
$13.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
10All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
4726 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
130The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$1.1M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in Harford County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Population and households in Harford County

Population, 2025 estimate
266,446+2.0% since 2020
Households
101,795
Median age
41.6
Homes lived in by their owners
80%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
437 sq. mi.
People per square mile
603
Median household income
$112,265+25.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$133,186
Median home value
$386,400
Jobs located here
87,506
Daytime population
226,500Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Harford County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the coffee shops and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Harford County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across Maryland

Every Maryland market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Maryland for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Maryland, with Harford County marked.

Top counties in Maryland

Counties in Maryland ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Charles County, MD92315.1$9.8M+5.9%#13 of 2,063
2Frederick County, MD87716.8$7.4M+11.0%#40 of 2,063
3Calvert County, MD85236.9$7.6M+1.7%#48 of 2,063
4Prince George’s County, MD831805.2$8.7M+0.5%#61 of 2,063
5St. Mary’s County, MD81214.9$10M+2.4%#85 of 2,063
6Harford County, MD79474.6$10.2M+2.0%#113 of 2,063
7Carroll County, MD79416.4$7.7M+2.2%#114 of 2,063
8Cecil County, MD78348.4$5M+3.2%#145 of 2,063
9Howard County, MD74988.1$6.9M+1.9%#198 of 2,063
10Queen Anne’s County, MD742110.5$4.5M+8.8%#217 of 2,063

Other business types in Harford County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in Harford County, MD?

There are 47 coffee shops and cafes on map listings in Harford County as of September 2026. 26 of them (55%) are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 48 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes. Official counts list 10 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Harford County, MD spend on food away from home?

About $480.4M a year, or $4,719 per household. That is 16% above the U.S. average (an index of 116, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 47 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $10.2M per cafe. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes. It is estimated from the incomes of the 101,795 households in Harford County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Harford County, MD compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

Harford County has 4.6 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 58% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $10.2M, 2.8 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, Harford County would have about 130, against 47 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,121 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +24.3% for the U.S.

How fast is Harford County, MD growing?

Population estimates put Harford County at 266,446 people in 2025, up 2.0% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 101,795 households. The median household income in Harford County is $112,265 a year, 39% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.9% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Harford County scores 79 for coffee shops and cafes (high), #113 of 2,063 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Harford County. It maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for coffee shops and cafes · All 56 business types in Harford County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Harford County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Harford County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.